by Anya Nowlan
Steven was handsome in a rugged lumberjack sort of way, with an angular face and dark hair. It was hard to impress her, though, now that two green-eyed hockey bears had invaded her every thought. She had a feeling that even if she turned and ran right now, never to see either of the twins again, her bar had forever been set too high. No one could ever compare to how they were able to get under her skin.
“Hi,” was all she said in return, polite but dismissive.
Steven’s eyes were a bit hazy and his breath smelled of beer when he spoke.
“Can I get you another drink?”
“No, thanks. I’m good,” she replied, turning away from him and focusing on her glass in front of her.
Steven didn’t seem to take the hint, though.
“Come on, don’t be like that. I’m just trying to have a conversation with a pretty lady.”
It is not my job to entertain you, Lily thought.
“I’m sorry, but I’m not interested,” she said instead.
“Where are you from? Are you staying in town? I could show you around,” Steven continued on, like he hadn’t even heard her.
Lily was starting to get annoyed. Being persistent was one thing, but flat out ignoring her wishes wasn’t just rude, it was unacceptable. There were few things she hated more than being talked at by people who had no cause to do so.
Usually she wouldn’t hesitate telling this dude off, but being surrounded by people at all sides, she didn’t feel threatened enough to cause a scene.
“Look, thanks for the offer and everything, but I’d appreciate if you left me alone now,” she said firmly.
“You could at least look at me when you speak,” the man replied, an edge creeping into his voice.
Before she could react, Steven had a hand on her arm and was swiveling her around to face him. Momentarily stunned by the sheer arrogance of the gesture, she stared at him, absolutely furious. Steven only smiled at her, like him putting his hands on her like that was supposed to sweep her off her feet or something.
Lily was opening her mouth to tell him to fuck off, when Steven suddenly yanked his arm back, his smile vanishing. When his eyes focused on something over her shoulder, she could only sigh as her shoulders sank.
“There are two hulking macho men standing right behind me, giving you the death glare, aren’t there?” she asked.
Steven nodded before quickly vacating his seat and backing away, arms held up. She could see Connor and Crash step forward from the corner of her eye, looking as tense as a coiled spring.
“Get lost,” Crash growled, making Steven stumble as he took another step back.
“I don’t want any trouble,” Steven replied, sobering up in an instant.
“Too late,” Connor said, in a tone that told Lily he wasn’t playing around.
Turning around and rushing towards the exit, it didn’t look like Steven had a response for that. The twins looked like they were ready to follow the man outside, so Lily reached out a hand, cutting them off.
“Whoa, whoa. Chill out,” she said, hearing their chests rumble at her side. “And stop growling! Here, sit down and have a drink or something,” she added, patting the freshly empty stool next to her.
“That asshole need a lesson in manners,” Crash remarked.
“He’s just some drunk jerk,” Lily waved her hand in the air.
The last thing she wanted was the twins to get into trouble because of her. And starting a fight with a local in a tight-knit community like this could only mean bad news. The men still looked ready to tear apart anyone who got in their way, but at least they had stopped in their tracks.
She couldn’t deny that she had butterflies in her stomach now, though. They came to her rescue! How… adorable.
“Besides, I had it handled,” she said, picking up her glass and taking another sip, hoping to quiet the butterflies flapping around in her stomach.
Connor and Crash sat down on either side of her, still grumbling to themselves but seeming to calm down. And she wasn’t kidding around when she said she had it handled. That guy might have been bigger than her, but he was also drunk and off his guard. A well-timed over the shoulder throw and she would have had him on his ass.
Not a skill that the team should know I have, though, she mused.
“So, you’re talking to us again?” Connor remarked, raising a brow at her.
“I wasn’t not talking to you,” she argued, leaning back to look at both brothers.
“So you didn’t freak out after hearing we both want you?” Crash asked, his gaze burning into her.
Lily gulped as his words hung in the air.
What the hell am I supposed to say to that?
Twenty
Crash
“I did freak out a little, but not for the reason you might think,” Lily said, sounding slightly hesitant. “I guess you could say I freaked out because I wasn’t freaking out enough.”
“Okay, you have my attention,” Connor replied, resting an elbow on the counter.
“What does that mean, exactly?” Crash asked, eyes narrowing.
Lily gulped down what was left in her glass before answering.
“To hear that you two shared a girlfriend, it should have been shocking, scandalous – which is the way the newspapers would frame it, right? It should have been intimidating, at least, or something you need to get used to.
“And it is, to some extent. But more than that, I found it… exciting,” she said, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth.
Crash could feel his chest swell with anticipation. Did she want them as badly as they wanted her? He’d suspected as much, but to hear it out loud was something else. It made his blood rush as he imagined Lily wrapped around him, whispering his name.
It felt like fate had plopped Lily in his lap, like an unexpected gift. Intelligent, with a sense of humor and with an intriguing spark hidden beneath her sometimes reserved façade, she was the first woman he didn’t just want to spend time with in the bedroom.
She was in a league of her own where he was concerned, and he had a feeling the more he got to know her, the more he’d like about her. It was just what his gut was telling him, what it had been telling him all along, if he was completely honest.
Could she be the missing piece in our lives? he thought, glancing over at his brother.
His bear was clawing his way closer to his skin, apparently as excited as he was. The animal side of him felt stronger than ever before, making him feel almost invincible.
“Lily…” Connor started, but trailed off, searching for the right words.
Crash was about to try himself, when Eddie ambled up to them, shooting concerned glances behind him.
“I think Wyatt’s had one too many,” he said, sucking on his teeth.
“Wyatt? Really?” Connor asked, brows rising.
“Yeah, he’s kind of slumped over at the table... I’m thinking I should get him home.”
That sparked an idea in Crash’s brain.
“You should stay, I can take him. I only had one beer when we first got here, so I’m good to drive. I’m feeling a bit tired, anyway.”
“You sure?” Eddie questioned, sounding hesitant.
“I’ll go, too,” Connor interjected, giving Crash a look that said he knew exactly what he was doing. “Someone should keep an eye on him while Crash is driving.”
“Lily, didn’t you say you were getting a headache?” Crash asked, turning to her.
“Uh…” she stuttered for a moment, clearly unsure of how to respond.
Crash started to doubt his plan. Maybe he had pushed too hard, too fast. But he couldn’t pass by an opportunity to have some time with Lily, away from the bustle of the bar. Even if it meant looking after a drunk Wyatt.
He had thought that’s what she wanted, too.
“Yeah, I feel a migraine coming on,” she groaned, rubbing her temple.
If he hadn’t known better, he would have thought she wasn’t faking at all.
“Okay, that settles it then. We’ll all get Wyatt and make sure he gets into bed,” Connor exclaimed. “You can stay here with the boys and enjoy the rest of the night,” he said to Eddie.
“Alright, if y’all are okay with that,” Eddie shrugged, and they all walked over to the table.
Elbows on the table, head propped up in his hands, Wyatt looked like he had trouble keeping his eyes open. And it wasn’t that long ago that he had seemed more or less sober. The man must have really been throwing back those scotches.
“Okay, here we go,” Crash said as he helped the assistant coach out of his chair and shouldered his weight.
Wyatt struggled to get on his feet and Connor stepped in, helping to hold him up. Mumbling something under his breath, Wyatt looked like he was in bad shape as his knees kept falling out from under him.
“We got it, guys. Have some beers for us,” Crash called out in way of a good-bye as they started making their way towards the door.
“Get back safe,” Adrian replied, followed by similar sentiments from the others.
Lily held the door open as they got Wyatt outside. Crash threw her the keys so she could unlock their rental, and they all maneuvered the drunk man into the backseat.
“I’m fine,” Wyatt slurred, but luckily didn’t fight their help.
Connor got in the back with him while Crash climbed into the driver’s seat, with Lily by his side. The car doors slammed shut and off they went, weaving through winding roads with the headlights their only illumination.
Wyatt was still mumbling incoherently, but seemed mostly unaware of his surroundings. Connor found a bottle of water on the backseat and tried to get the man to drink some with moderate success.
It wasn’t exactly the perfect scenario to discuss what was happening between the brothers and Lily, but Crash couldn’t help himself. Eddie had already cut in at the most inopportune moment, and Crash was dying to know what was going on in Lily’s head.
She kept craning her neck to look back at Wyatt, a concerned look on her face.
“Don’t worry. Wyatt’s a shifter. He’ll bounce back quicker than most,” he tried reassuring her.
“If you say so,” she replied, sounding slightly skeptical.
“I actually wanted to ask, what exactly did you mean when you said you found the notion of being with both of us exciting?”
“I think you know what I meant,” she answered, her voice low.
“Okay. A better question would be, are those feelings you would act on?” he prodded, fingers tightening around the steering wheel as he waited for her to answer.
“I don’t know yet. It’s safe to say I’m considering it. You two always looking at me like you’re about ready to eat me alive isn’t really helping me think, you know,” Lily said, an accusatory tone in her voice.
“You shouldn’t look so delicious then,” Connor threw in, leaning forward in the backseat.
“You see? You see what I have to deal with here? There’s nothing more dangerous than a man who knows he’s sexy,” she muttered, slightly exasperated.
“She thinks we’re sexy,” Crash said, unable to help how smug he sounded.
“I knew it,” Connor replied with a quick fist bump.
Lily rolled her eyes, turning to look out the window.
“Can we talk about this later? Maybe when we don’t have a drunk man with us, looking like he’s about to throw up at any moment?” she said.
“That seems reasonable,” Connor nodded, looking over at Wyatt.
“Okay. But we’re going to have to talk about it eventually.”
And I for one am looking forward to it, he thought, glancing at Lily.
Twenty-One
Lily
Lily closed the car doors as the twins helped Wyatt inside. They were met by Ben wearing his reading glasses when they got to the living room, with his computer in his lap. He shot up as soon as he saw the condition Wyatt was in.
“What the hell happened?” Ben asked.
“Just a couple of drinks too many,” Connor explained.
“He can barely stand,” Ben commented, looking incredulous. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen Wyatt drunk before.”
“Be that as it may, we should get him to bed,” Crash said, shouldering most of Wyatt’s weight.
Taking off his glasses, Ben stepped in.
“I got it,” he sighed. “I’ll take care of him. Hopefully he’ll still be able to lead the training session tomorrow,” he added, grunting slightly when Crash slid Wyatt’s body over to him.
“You sure you don’t need any help?” Connor asked.
“Did I stutter?” Ben countered sharply. “I’m not as old as you think, you know.”
Hooking his arm underneath Wyatt’s armpit, he easily heaved the man back onto his feet.
“Yes, sir,” Crash replied, turning and ushering Lily out of the room. “See you in the morning.”
Connor pulled the sliding doors of the living room closed after them, and suddenly Lily was all too aware she was alone in the dark with them. Not knowing what to say, she just started walking, first to the staircase and then up the stairs to the third floor. The brothers followed her wordlessly, trailing close behind.
What am I going to do? she thought, feeling slightly frantic.
Now that she had admitted her feelings to the twins, the game was on. They weren’t going to let her off the hook and really, she didn’t want them to. Inside, at her core, the decision of what to do next had already been made. It was just the cowardly, afraid-to-be-vulnerable parts of her that were still putting up a fight, and a weak one at that.
She knew she was guarded and didn’t let people in, she had that much self-awareness, at least. But up until now, no one had affected her enough to make her consider challenging those aspects of herself.
She had even thought the worst of Crash and Connor at first, when as it turned out, they were just dealing with a complicated ex situation. Her work had always crowded into her personal life, influencing her decisions. Everyone was a suspect to her, but she was growing tired of living like that.
Crash and Connor seemed to be genuinely decent men, and they wanted her of all people. A part of her whispered it was just because she was the only woman around and it was convenient for them to pursue her, but she pushed that voice aside.
Even if it were true, it wouldn’t matter at this point. She was too far gone. Her body was already throbbing with anticipation, her skin prickling when she felt the twins walking so close behind her, close enough for their breath to hit the back of her neck.
Coming to a stop at her bedroom door, she felt out of breath, and it wasn’t from climbing the stairs.
“Are you ready to talk now?” Crash asked, his voice low and warm.
Talking was the last thing on her mind, but she nodded as she opened the door and flicked on the light. The click of the door closing behind them sounded loud in her head. It was like she was shutting off her defenses.
To her surprise, the thought actually felt liberating. She couldn’t continue keeping everyone at arm’s length, afraid of ending up like one of her clients – deceived, disappointed, devastated.
Something about Connor and Crash made her want to take the risk, to leap into the unknown with eyes wide open. She felt the risk just might justify the rewards.
Gesturing for them to sit down on the bed, she started pacing around the room, trying to find the right thing to say.
“Come sit down with us,” Connor said.
“There’s plenty of room,” Crash added, looking at the space between him and Connor.
Lily’s heart was thumping against her ribcage.
Am I really going to do this? she thought, a sliver of panic slipping in to crack her resolve.
“Good try, but then I definitely won’t be able to think about what I want to articulate,” she replied, coming to stand before them with a hand on her hip.
Two sets of eyes stared at her, snaking around the outline of her body and making her feel warm.
“Words are overrated,” Crash said dismissively.
“I bet you can tell us what you want to tell us without them,” Connor added.
“That,” Lily said firmly, pointing a finger at them, “was probably the corniest thing I’ve ever heard.”
“Then why are you blushing?” Connor countered.
“I’m not!” she protested, her hands flying to her cheeks. “It’s just hot in here.”
The brothers exchanged a knowing look, grinning to each other.
“Okay, is that the wordless communication you were talking about? I can’t read minds, you know,” she huffed.
The twins both stood up, crowding around her. Overwhelmed by the response her body was having at them being so close, looking at her like they knew a secret about her she wasn’t even aware of, she suddenly felt weak.
All Crash had to do was reach out and trail a finger down her arm, and she melted against him. With Crash at her back, his hands moving up her sides and leaving fire in their wake, Connor stepped closer, until there were mere inches between their faces.
His face was tight, his eyes totally focused on hers when he leaned in ever so slowly, rubbing her nose against hers. Lily’s head started to spin, the men’s musky scent swirling all around her and anticipation burning in her veins.
Cupping her face in his hands, Connor pressed his lips to hers, gently at first. She got on her tiptoes to meet him, while Crash was tugging her hair-tie out of her hair, letting her auburn locks fall down her back.
Connor’s mouth was cool on hers, teasing and soft, as he alternated from kissing her cheeks and her lips. When he nibbled on her lower lip, that was the last straw. Her hands flew to clasp around his neck as if on their own volition.
His hard chest pressed against her, a growl echoing in the back of his throat when he kissed her again, with more urgency this time.
Crash was brushing her hair aside and softly biting her neck, sending a shiver down her spine. Connor’s tongue snaked into her mouth when she moaned, and she got lost in the sensations taking her over. She couldn’t get enough of the way he claimed her mouth, consuming her until she felt breathless and lightheaded.
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